


The Way to a Ghoul's Heart (Is Through their Stomach)

by Anonymous



Category: Tokyo Ghoul
Genre: M/M, OS!Kaneki, Oneshot Kaneki Ken, Oneshot!Kaneki
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-10
Updated: 2017-04-10
Packaged: 2018-10-17 05:05:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,358
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10587018
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: Set in the original Tokyo Ghoul oneshot. Differences in personality can be explained there.This story is up for adoption. Feel free to remix it. Just link back to this story for reference if you do.This can be considered complete.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Set in the original Tokyo Ghoul oneshot. Differences in personality can be explained there.
> 
> This story is up for adoption. Feel free to remix it. Just link back to this story for reference if you do.
> 
> This can be considered complete.

 

 

 

“Are you okay?”

Hide finds him at the back of a parking lot, slumped against a wall and gasping for breath. The ghoul is clutching his side- the cloth ripped and bloodstained under his hand- and yet somehow finds the strength to snarl at him in warning as Hide tentatively steps towards him.

Hide pauses, knuckles clenching around the straps of the grocery bags in his hands as he tries not to falter at the sight of his eyes- black and red and brimming with anger. 

“Let me help you,” he offers, gathering the courage to take more steps. 

It makes him wonder if it’s his words or his scent that brings forth the hunger he now finds in those eyes. Eyes that draw ever closer as the ghoul uses the last of its strength to try and lunge at his neck.

Thankfully, he’s weak. Both starvation and blood loss cause him to drop like a weight at Hide’s feet as soon as the taser touches his skin.

“I’m going to help you,” Hide promises.

 

.

.

.

 

_ “He’s a prodigy. You should really consider enrolling him in the program.” _

_ “Why? They’re just going to use him.” _

_ “But he’d be helping so many people-” _

_ “You mean humans. In the end, they’d still want my son to kill ghouls.” _

 

.

.

.

 

When the ghoul wakes up, he immediately tries go for Hide’s throat again, this time driven by malice. Unfortunately for him, Hide lingers just past the area of his reach, arms impeded by the length of steel rope that binds him to the headposts of the bed. It makes him foam at the mouth, incredibly enraged by his hunger, his weakness, this  _ rotten appetizer- _

“I’ll kill you, _ I’ll kill you! _ You’re going to  _ pay  _ for this you _ worthless scrap of meat- _ ”

“Yeesh, you’re incredibly feisty for someone who’s starving,” Hide pouts, stepping back as one of the ghoul’s hands come a little too close for comfort, “Could you please stop? I brought you food.”

He taps his foot against the serving cart behind him, drawing the ghoul’s eyes to the covered tray sitting on top. At his wary silence, Hide steps back to push the tray forward, keeping distance between them even as he lifts the cover to show the ghoul the steaming bowl of noodle soup underneath.

“I know it’s not what you’d expect but-”

Hide yelps, cut off by the sudden pain of boiling water spilling against his skin. He immediately darts back, cradling his badly burned hand to his chest. Tears come unbidden to his eyes at the contact and the ghoul barks with laughter, mocking and satisfied.

“Did you think I’d just sit here and play games with you? Don’t take me for a fool. If you ever come close to me again, I’ll do much worse than that.”

Hide tries to reclaim his resolve, but the following words have him fleeing the room in seconds.

“I usually take my meat raw, but for you, I’ll make an exception.”

 

.

.

.

 

_ “Why do we have to fight? I don’t want to hurt anyone Papa.” _

 

.

.

.

 

“Are you just an idiot?” asks the ghoul, watching Hide flitter back in the room nervously after a day. His hand is bandaged and the slightest touch still causes him pain, but Hide continues forward with his serving cart, “Sandwiches? Hah, I guess you knew better than to serve something hot this time. That doesn’t mean I can’t find a way to still hurt you.”

“Will you please eat it?” Hide asks softly, “Just… just try it.”

“Why should I?” The ghoul asks brusquely, “Why should I trust you? You kidnapped me. A ghoul. Even a human like you can get arrested for this.”

“I didn’t turn you in to the CCG.”

“How do I know you aren’t CCG?”

“Because I hate them,” Hide replies, his voice low but filled with a rage so sudden and grave that the ghoul is shocked into silence, “And the enemy of my enemy is my friend.”

“I am not your friend, human.”

“But you can be my ally.”

 

.

.

.

 

He falls, eventually, to his own stubbornness. Hide, bearing burns and scabs and scars, rests a simple bread roll on the ghoul’s chest. 

Overcome by hunger, the ghoul mistakes it for a limb and immediately devours it. It’s soft- soft like a young girl’s skin- and he giggles in delight as he swallows it down. 

It’s not until ten minutes later, with over twenty bread rolls sitting in his stomach, does the ghoul regain clarity. He looks down, awe and horror and confusion warring on his face at the sight of bread crumbs lying on his lap, sticking to his face. And yet, the taste on his tongue is-

“Delicious,” he mutters, thumbing his lips clean.

Hide beams.

 

.

.

.

 

“Who are you?”

“Someone who can help you.”

 

.

.

.

 

“It’s not perfect, not by a long shot,” Hide explains after watching the ghoul gobble up a whole tray of desserts, “I’m still struggling to balance the taste and the nutrients. So far, increasing one decreases the other, and since taste is more important here, there’s too little energy in each meal. At this rate, you’d have to eat fifty of those to get the same amount you’d get from one human body.”

The ghoul licks his fingers free of whipped cream, amused when Hide averts his eyes at the sight, “You’d be right about the taste. I’d have murdered you on the spot if you made me eat shit.”

“I don’t think these constant death threats are healthy for our relationship,” Hide teases, moreso to ease his own nervousness, “If we’re going to work together, it’d be nice if I could carry a nonviolent conversation with you.”

“Together?” The ghoul lowers his eyelids, “You expect me to stay confined here and become your personal taste tester?”

“It’s for a good cause. Didn’t you say you liked the taste?”

Hide jumps back in fright when the ghoul shoots forward, his bindings just barely holding him back, “That doesn’t mean I want to stay chained here like a little pet being fed treats,  _ human _ .” The sound of his chains rattling against the bedpost reminds Hide of his own naivety, cursing when he remembers just exactly why he’d been able to keep the ghoul here for so long.

“Please, I need you. I can’t find anyone else- I’d get killed for sure!”

“Why? Something like this, shouldn’t you be working for a bigshot corporation? You should have plenty of test subjects, so why are you so isolated?”

“You don’t understand,” Hide murmurs, “Ghouls have existed for a long time. I’m not the first to try this. I know because I watched the ones who tried get killed!” His voice rises at the end, anger and misery crumpling his features as he sits back on his heels, tightly clutching his hair.

“Why do we have to fight? I don’t want to fight. I just want to help.”

The ghoul stares at Hide, his hand curling under his chin as he tilts his head and studies him.

“Alright.”

 

.

.

.

 

“If we’re going to work together, can you at least give me your name?”

“... Just call me Ken, human.”

 

.

.

.

 

“Unchain me.”

“Do you promise not to try and kill me?”

“I’m asking you out of politeness. You and I know I’m strong enough to break these by myself now.”

 

.

.

.

 

“Human,” Ken calls out, watching as Hide inclines his head to stare at him from the kitchen. He’s stretched out on the couch, languid and relaxed after a stressful time of cleaning up the mess his absence caused for both his apartment complex and Anteiku, “If I’m going to serve as your guinea pig, I’d like to make a few demands.”

“What is it?” Hide asks cautiously.

“Make whatever I ask you to.”

“Like?”

Ken dredges up a memory from his walk back. A memory of drunken laughter and satisfied smiles underneath a small wooden roof, “I want ramen.”

Hide freezes, “I, um,” he stutters, calling Ken’s attention to the sudden sickly pallor in his face, “Y-you… don’t you want something better than that?”

Ken scowls, irritated. He’s about to snap back at Hide but one look at his face and trembling  _ scarred  _ hand stops him.

Oh.

Hide flinches when Ken walks into the kitchen beside him, desperately wondering if he should try to swipe the knife away from his reach or not. To his surprise, Ken does it for him, pushing away the cutting board to the side as he searches through Hide’s cupboards. After a few moments, he sets down a pot and turns to appraise Hide.

“Um, what are you doing?”

“I said I wanted ramen,” Ken deadpans. Hide bites his lip and nods, afraid to keep arguing with the monster he lets loose around his house. But before he can take the pot to fill it up, Ken snatches it from him.

“Tsk. I’ll handle it. I still don’t trust you not to poison me whenever I scare you. Just tell me what to do.”

Hide is confused. Confused, but also scared, especially when Kaneki finally sets the prepared pot on the stove to boil. His hand shakes and he backs away, offering Ken the last of the instructions in a shaky voice before trying to leave.

Ken stops him by grabbing his shoulder and Hide curls into himself, prepared to feel pain blossom through him as boiling hot water is thrown at the back of his head.

But none of that happens. 

Instead, Ken squeezes his shoulder, mutters ‘Good job,’ and lightly shoves him back out.

Hide walks back into the living room, heart beating wildly for reasons he no longer knows.

 

.

.

.

 

Ken takes the ramen out in two bowls and immediately slurps it down. The heat Hide expected to feel is never found.

(Or so he tells himself. Though Ken doesn’t try to throw the bowl at his face, Hide still feels heat suffuse his cheeks and settle in the bottom of his stomach.)

 

.

.

.

 

Ken comes to help Hide cook more often. He claims it is easier for them to perfect the meals if Hide isn’t torn between science and culinary arts, and the knowledge he picks up from cooking human food make it easier for him to blend in. 

“Besides, I do a better job at making it taste good.”

It takes Hide a few months before he realizes that he no longer fears the sight of Ken with knives and boiling water.

 

.

.

.

 

“I never pegged you as the chocolate type.”

“How would you know? I’ve never had chocolate before this, idiot.”

“Haha, that’s true!” Hide chuckles, carefully rolling a piece of strawberry into a chocolate ball. Ken is standing beside him, stirring a different mixture of coffee and chocolate, both of them donning plain black aprons, “I guess I just didn’t think you’d be into the lovey-dovey part of it.”

“Chocolate isn’t just for Valentines’ Day.”

“But we’re making it today, and today is Valentines’ Day,” Hide retorts.

It’s at this moment, the atmosphere light and comfortable between them that Hide makes another realization. 

A realization that strikes him brutally as Ken leans forward to wipe a smudge of chocolate off his cheek before licking it off his thumb, “Idiot. You’re so damn messy.”

 

.

.

.

 

_ Papa. _

 

_ I’m so messed up. _

 

.

.

.

 

_ “Where is he?” _

_ “Not here.” _

_ “Where did you hide him, Nagachika-san?” _

_ “All you should know is that he’ll never be yours.” _

_ My son will never help you murderers. _

 

.

.

.

 

“Do you like me?”

Hide is dizzy. Ken has him pinned against the wall. The bread rolls are left on the counter, untouched. Hide had been so proud of himself too- Ken only needed to eat three this time before feeling full. 

He’d been smiling so brightly, cheeks flushed and oh so rosy, that not even the exotic allure of the once-coveted human food could distract Ken from him.

Nose buried in Hide’s hair, Ken is reminded that he hasn’t eaten human for a very long time.

“I want to devour you.”

He means it.

 

.

.

.

 

“Maybe I should bottle up your sweat and use it as a spice. I bet it’d taste amazing.”

Hide pants, flushed red from the tips of his ears to his chest. Ken smirks at the sight, moves his hips and delights in the scream he draws out from him.

“What do you say,  _ Hide _ ?”

 

.

.

.

 

“On second thought, it’s much more fun to make you cry. I think I’ll use your tears instead.”

 

.

.

.

 

_ “You don’t understand do you Nagachika? _

 

_ Salvation is fleeting for those destined for hell.” _

 

.

.

.

 

“Ken, we did it,” Hide cries, joyful. Finally, his skills could be put to use. To help ghouls rather than hurt them.

After all this time, he expects a snarky retort, maybe a lewd comment or another endearing insult, but his lover remains silent. Hide looks at the phone in confusion then tries again, “Ken? Are you there? Ken!”

“...Hide,” Ken finally replies. Hide’s blood freezes at the pain in his voice, pain he knows Ken is desperately trying to hide from him, “Hide, I’m sorry.”

“Ken, where are you?! What’s going on?”

“I’m sorry. I can’t be with you anymore.”

“Ken?”

“... karma… it coming.”

“Ken!”

 

.

.

.

 

_ “You confuse me,” Ken had whispered, moments after Hide had fallen asleep. He strokes the bare skin of his shoulder, forever enchanted at the feeling of hunger that fills him, so unlike the destructive need from before, “How can you be so happy helping monsters?” _

 

.

.

.

 

_ Hide, not really asleep, had waited until Ken himself had fallen unconscious. He turns around in his embrace, stroking the side of his face before pressing a soft kiss on the tip of his nose. _

_ “Not all monsters live in the dark.” _

 

.

.

.

 

“After months of investigation, the CCG managed to locate the binge eater terrorizing the 20th ward. Credit is given to Inspector Shinohara, who tracked and killed the ghoul before it could claim another victim. According to the CCG, the ghoul, named Kaneki Ken, worked as a waiter for a local coffee shop. He is also known by the alias  _ Pierrot… _ ”

 

.

.

.

 

“Papa, I’m sorry.”

 

I said I’d never hurt anyone.

 

.

.

 

_ But then they  _ **_killed_ ** _ him. _

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by Mili's [RTRT](https://youtu.be/IcpzqZrpLVM).


End file.
